Page 81 - Pakistan

Party with alcohol held at Pak's Kartapur Gurudwara; action sought

Moreover, Jathedar of Takht Damdama Sahib Giani Harpreet Singh also called the incident as "unfortunate" and asked the Pakistan government to take strict action against the perpetrators

PML-N indicates plan B for making Nawaz Sharif Pak PM record 4th time

Indicating that it has already prepared a plan B to ensure that Nawaz Sharif becomes the prime minister of Pakistan for a record fourth time, a senior PML-N leader has said that if there are legal hurdles for this, the party will remove them if voted back to power. Pakistan is going to the polls on February 8. The 73-year-old Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Sharif returned to Pakistan from London on October 21 after four years of self-imposed exile. After his arrival, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) restored Nawaz's appeals against his conviction in the Avenfield Apartments and Al-Azizia corruption cases but did not fix any date for the hearing. Nawaz has been on protective bail. Besides, the three-time prime minister is also facing disqualification till 2028 to contest polls in which he also needs a clean chit from the court. PML-N Punjab president Rana Sanaullah on Saturday said that if there are legal hurdles impeding Nawaz's accession to the Prime Minister's Office f

US lawmakers call for withholding assistance to Pakistan over poll fairness

A group of 11 influential US lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to withhold future assistance to Pakistan until Islamabad restores constitutional order and holds free and fair elections, it emerged on Sunday. In a letter to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, the lawmakers, which included Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, who is one of the champions of Muslim causes in the US Congress, requested the state department to assess if US-origin security assistance had facilitated human rights violations in Pakistan. We further request that future security assistance be withheld until Pakistan has moved decisively toward the restoration of Constitutional order, including by holding free and fair elections in which all parties are able to participate freely, they wrote. Pakistan's moves to further strengthen the blasphemy law also figured prominently in the letter, which warned Secretary Blinken that the proposed changes would be used to further tighten the noose around smaller religious

Roadside bomb kills 3 in Pakistan's insurgency-hit Baluchistan province

A roadside bomb exploded, killing three people in insurgency-hit southwestern Baluchistan province on Sunday, police said. Police officer Mohammad Rahim said the bomb was planted on a dirt road in Balgatar area of Kech district and was detonated remotely. Three men, two of whom were brothers, were killed while on their way to a family gathering, and a privately owned car was destroyed, he said. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast but suspicion falls on Baluch nationalists turned separatist groups who have been involved in low-level insurgency for over two decades in the gas and mineral-rich province. The groups have been calling for independence from the central government in Islamabad. Kech district and surrounding areas have suffered from insurgency for years. Insurgent groups have claimed responsibility for attacks on security forces and civilian targets in recent months. Islamic militants and a banned Sunni extremist group also operate in the province.

Pakistan recalls widely-consumed syrup over potential health risks: Report

The alert comes as a result of potential health risks associated with the incorrect usage of the syrup, commonly employed in the treatment and prevention of iron deficiency anemia.

IMF revises Pakistan's foreign loan requirement to $25 bn: Report

The IMF has revised down Pakistan's foreign loan requirements to USD 25 billion for the ongoing fiscal year -- reducing it by USD 3.4 billion in a big relief for its cash-starved economy, according to a media report on Saturday. The Washington-based global lender also lowered the economic growth projection to just 2 per cent, turning down the government's external as well as macroeconomic forecasts, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. The International Monetary Fund's delegation wrapped two-week-long talks with Pakistani officials on November 15 and announced that a staff-level agreement has been reached to enable it to release USD 700 million in the second tranche of an already agreed USD 3 billion loan. The report said that in comparison with July this year, the IMF lowered the foreign loan requirements for this fiscal year from USD 28.4 billion to USD 25 billion. In four months, the government has already borrowed USD 6 billion while it expects rollovers of USD 12.5 ...

Pakistan smog crisis: Lahore tops global pollution ranking with 470 AQI

The second-largest city in Pakistan continues to suffer from a smog crisis that has affected the health and livelihood of millions of people

Increase in gas prices drives short-term inflation to 42% in Pakistan

The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) said the inflation reading stood at 41.9 per cent for the week ending November 16

Pak military appeals SC order that declared civilians' trial illegal

The petition also warned that declaring some sections of the Army Act and Official Secrets Act illegal would harm the country, it said

Economy still fragile, support from IMF to continue: Pakistan's FM

Pakistan's caretaker Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar has said Pakistan's economy continues to remain fragile despite improvements and the cash-strapped nation would have to go for more IMF loans for some time, a media report said on Friday. Akhtar also emphasised that Pakistan needs strong financial reforms to strengthen its economy, the Dawn newspaper quoted her as saying. "The next International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme is very necessary for some time as the economy has returned to stability that was still very fragile. Until we are able to increase exports and domestic resources, we will need another programme," Akhtar said. Her remarks came a day after the Pakistan government and the IMF concluded a review of the ongoing USD 3 billion stand-by agreement with a staff-level agreement, opening the way for Pakistan to get USD 700 million in the second tranche. She said there was no more refuge from undertaking long-standing reforms. The country will not survive without this.

Pak court extends until Nov 20 stay against trial of Imran in cipher case

A Pakistan high court Thursday extended until November 20 the stay against the jail trial of former prime minister Imran Khan in the cipher case. The Islamabad High Court (IHC) bench comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz extended the stay during the hearing of 71-year-old Khan's intra-court appeal against the jail trial. The appeal was filed against a single-member bench of the same court which last month upheld the trial of Khan in the Adiala Jail Rawalpindi where he has been incarcerated. According to Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, the IHC extended the stay of the cipher case trial under official secret act till Monday, November 20.

Pakistan gets initial nod from IMF on $700 mn loan tranche of $3 bn scheme

The Washington-based lender announced that it reached a staff-level agreement to give the nation access to a payout of roughly $700 million - subject to approval from the IMF's executive board

IMF reaches staff-level agreement with Pakistan on $700 mn bailout review

Pakistan and the IMF reached a staff-level agreement for the release of a USD 700 million second tranche of an ongoing USD 3 billion bailout package, the global lender said on Wednesday, in a major relief to the cash-strapped country. While approving the USD 3 billion loan in July this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF)had also released the first tranche of USD 1.2 billion. Although essentially a bridge loan, it offered much respite to Pakistan, battling an acute balance of payments crisis and falling foreign exchange reserves. A team led by the IMF mission chief for Pakistan, Nathan Porter, visited Islamabad from November 2-15 to hold discussions on the first review of the country's economic programme supported by a stand-by arrangement (SBA), according to a statement issued by the global lender after the discussions. The IMF team has reached a staff-level agreement (SLA) with the Pakistani authorities on the first review of their stabilisation programme supported by the

Taliban min attends meet in Pak despite tensions over expulsions of Afghans

A Cabinet minister from Afghanistan's Taliban-led government attended a trade meeting in Pakistan despite tensions over the expulsion of Afghans living in the country illegally, officials said Wednesday. Around 300,000 Afghans have returned home since last month, when Pakistan launched a nationwide crackdown on undocumented foreigners. The crackdown mainly affects about 1.7 million Afghans who fled during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation of their country and after the Taliban takeover in 2021. The Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan has denounced the crackdown. However, this week the Taliban government sent Commerce and Industry Minister Nooruddin Azizi to Islamabad for a meeting of commerce and trade ministers from Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. Aziz met separately with Pakistani officials to discuss trade issues and the expulsion of Afghans. In a statement on X, previously known as Twitter, the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad said the three sides agreed to expand trade, .

IMF advises Pak not to make preferred investors group, ensure transparency

The IMF has advised cash-strapped Pakistan against creating a group of preferred investors or distortions in the country under the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) and to ensure transparency and accountability in its business deals, according to a media report on Wednesday. Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Dr Jehanzeb Khan told economists and journalists that the visiting International Monetary Fund mission had raised questions as to the need for the creation of another institution like SIFC and whether this would lead to the distressed sale of assets and advised against preferred investors. They want transparency and accountability should be above board in these matters, Khan was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper. The two sides are reported to have had back-and-forth clarifications on Tuesday on finalisation of the Memorandum of Economic and Financial Policies (MEFP) and were expecting to conclude the talks on a positive note on Wednesday. The IMF staff missi

BSF recovers China made Quadcopter Drones used in drug smuggling in Punjab

The CAPF intercepted the movement of a suspected drone near the Village Mianwali District of Tarn Taran, following which the BSF troops immediately reached the spot to intercept the drone.

Cash-strapped Pakistan sold weapons worth $364 mn to Ukraine: Report

Cash-strapped Pakistan reportedly earned USD 364 million in an arms deal with two private US companies last year to supply ammunition to Ukraine in its war with Russia, according to a media report. A British military cargo plane flew from Pakistan Air Force Base Nur Khan in Rawalpindi to the British military base in Cyprus, Akrotiri, and then to Romania a total of five times to supply arms to the war-torn country, the BBC Urdu reported on Monday. Islamabad has, however, consistently denied that it has provided any ammunition to Ukraine, a neighbouring country to Romania. Citing details of the contract from the American Federal Procurement Data System, the BBC report claimed that Pakistan signed two contracts with American companies named Global Military and Northrop Grumman for the sale of 155mm shells. These agreements to provide weapons to Ukraine were signed on August 17, 2022, and were specifically linked to the purchase of 155mm shells. The Foreign Office in Islamabad has den

Nearly 400,000 refugees returned to Afghanistan from Pak in past two months

The Afghan nationals, who are currently detained in Pakistan, raised concerns about their situation. Afghan nationals said that they are facing severe challenges, TOLO News reported

BSF intercepts another drone coming from Pakistan in Punjab's Ferozepur

"As per the laid-down drill, BSF troops immediately reacted to stop the misadventure by smugglers," said BSF

China lends over $21 bn more than previously thought to Pakistan: Report

A major portion - $ 28.4 billion of China's loan to Pakistan was in the energy sector, according to the data found by AidData